The Road To Perfection
by Paigeriffic
Summary: Prue is given a trio of young witches to train. As the demon comes through the portal Prue prepares the face it... but will she be alone? *Renamed*
1. Into The Fray

A/n, I wrote this story a while back and only just found it today. I'm not sure if I will continue past the three chapters I have already. There are a few ideas floating around but nothing solid, I'll see the reaction to this first :).  
  
Prue held up her hands and a myriad of weapons flew off the walls of her apartment and into a battered duffle bag. She hoisted the bag over her shoulder and strode towards the door. It burst open and she walked through. With a sigh she paused on the other side and stuck her head back around the door. "Come on, we need to leave now if we're gonna catch them before they... well. You know what they'll do if we don't get there."  
  
A confident looking girl shivered and followed Prue. "She's right, we have to get there. Just thinking about it makes me feel sick." Another girl and a young looking guy got to their feet with sighs and slowly trailed Prue and the first girl. They jumped as the door seemed to swing shut by itself after they'd passed through.   
  
The other girl frowned. "I hate it when she does that. Its just creepy." She pulled her jacket tighter and flipped the hood over her head.  
  
"Creepy maybe, but its saved your butt more than a few times." Countered the guy. He ignored her glare and carried on walking.  
  
Within ten minutes they'd reached an old abandoned factory. All the windows along the front wall were broken and the Iron Gate swung rustily in the wind. Its harsh creaking cut through the silence and echoed around the empty lot.  
  
The second girl rolled her eyes and tutted. "And that's another thing. Why are these places so damn clichéd? A dark and creepy building in the rough area of town. How... passé." She threw back her hood and stared through the railings at the factory.  
  
"Oh stop whinging Cele. You'll give us away... not to mention its annoying as hell." Said the first girl. She flicked her hair out of her eyes and went to stand next to Prue.  
  
"Blah blah blah. Stupid Madeline. Thinks she's so great. Prue's pet." Muttered Celena, as she kicked the rusty fence.  
  
Prue raised an eyebrow and exhaled. "If you two are quite finished." She stared intently at the factory. There was a faint flickering of light from the empty windowpanes on the top floor. "Look, at the top. That's where they are. We'll go inside and then Maddy can stealth the area. When it's clear we move forwards. Ok?" She turned back and got nods from the teens behind her. She ran across the scrubby grass on the other side of the fence and up to the large metal door.  
  
She turned the handle and leant on the door, pushing all of her weight against it. It didn't budge. Prue cursed under her breath and softly called out. "Jon, get over here. And you two as well."  
  
They ducked and quickly ran to Prue. "What's happened? Why'd you call me?" Asked Jon. A slight look of apprehension snuck onto his face.  
  
"The doors locked. From the inside. So I need you to... you know." She pointed at the door and then waggled her hands.  
  
"Aw man. You know it's hard for me to do it. And how do I know there's not some big demon waiting for me on the other side." He blinked nervously and pushed his hair back.  
  
"Well... there are actually big demons on the other side. It's the whole reason we're here actually. But they aren't waiting for you. Unless my 'annoying as hell' whinging gave us away." Interjected Cele, a devilish look on her face.  
  
Prue suppressed a laugh and tried to ignore her. "Oh come on Jon. You know the whole reason you're with me is to learn how to use your powers in the field."  
  
"We're not actually in a field." Muttered Cele. She hastily held up her hands in apology as Prue shot her a dark look. "Sorry, sorry. It was a joke. Geez." She trailed off and rolled her eyes again.  
  
"As I was 'trying' to say. You need to learn to use your powers when we're out and about. You won't always have the security of home to use them in. Now do you think you can at least try it? Just for me?" She fluttered her eyelashes and grinned at him.  
  
He sighed and tried not to smile. "Fine. But if I get stuck halfway through the door again then it's entirely your fault." He walked up to the thick door and pressed his hand against the cold metallic surface. His lightly tanned hand quickly lost colour and became slightly transparent, as flickered with a faint blue light. He pressed slightly harder and his hands began to sink into the metal. His palms moved through and were completely submerged. He pressed harder and shrieked as he fell all the way through.  
  
"He always does that. Presses to hard and then screams as he falls through. Dumbass." Cele said, she rolled her eyes again.  
  
"One of these days your eyes will roll right out of your head." Said Maddy, her voice condescending.  
  
"Good. Means I won't have to look at you anymore." Retorted Cele as she stuck her tongue out.  
  
"Will you two shut up for a second? I think he's got the lock open." Prue snapped, and the sound of a lock clicking open was heard from the other side of the door. It was followed by a straining sound and muffled swearing.  
  
A few seconds later Jon poked his head through the door and grinned sheepishly. "The... uh... door is kinda stuck. You'll have to TK it open." He pulled his head back through and there was silence from the other side.  
  
Prue held her hand up and focused on the door. It made buckling sounds and then burst open.   
  
Jon's swearing was the only sound coming from inside. He appeared in the now open doorway and glared at Prue. "You mind telling me when you're going to do that? I'd barely gotten out of the way before you nearly flattened me."  
  
"Oh, sorry. Well let's go save the innocents. Maddy, go and check this floor and then come back when you're done. Remember to check the path I marked out on the map." Prue said commandingly, as she sat down on an upturned crate.  
  
Maddy nodded and shut her eyes. Her body blurred at the edges and she slowly faded from sight. Well, faded to the untrained eye. But Prue, Jon and Cele could all make out a faint human shaped ripple in the air that quickly moved away from them.  
  
Cele sat on her heels and slowly rocked back and forth. "This is so boring." She said flatly.  
  
"Better this than being attacked by assorted beasts from hell." Replied Jon as he paced up and down, pausing every few seconds to check his watch.  
  
"Maybe. And will you sit down? You're driving me crazy with the pacing. Its not the pacing will make this end any quicker." Cele gave a final rock and then slowly straightened.  
  
"You don't know that it won't. Maybe the demons have a special weakness for pacing and if anyone paces within a kilometre of them then they are immediately vanquished. Didn't think of that, now did yo- what? It could happen." He stopped pacing and stared at the incredulous look on Cele's face. "It could!" He exclaimed, before turning to Prue. "It could happen, right Prue?"  
  
Prue shot a bemused look at Cele and nodded uncertainly. "Um... sure. I guess... But not these particular demons. If you had actually paid attention when I told you about them then you'd know that, now wouldn't you?"  
  
He shrugged and began pacing again. Cele rolled her eyes and began to pick at a frayed edge on her dark blue coat sleeve. After a few minutes there was a faint sound of footsteps and Maddy blurred back into sight.  
  
"Its all clear. There was one demon. But I kind of... killed it." She said offhandedly and patted the jewelled hilt of her athame.  
  
Prue tutted disapprovingly and stood up. "You should have waited till we were all there. Its not safe to take on demons by yourself. Imagine what would have happened if you were knocked unconscious somewhere while you were still all stealthed up. You might have died while we were trying to find you."  
  
Maddy lowered her eyes and blushed slightly. "To be fair I did sneak behind it and stab it in the back. It didn't even know I was there. Sent it straight to hell."  
  
"If it'd got you then it might have sent you 'back' to hell." Snorted Cele as she smirked at Maddy.  
  
In return Maddy pulled her athame loose and pointed it at Cele. "And if you don't shut your damn mouth then I'll send you straight after that demon."  
  
Prue hastily stepped forward and forcibly lowered Maddy's hand. "Ok then! That's enough. Maddy can lead the way to the elevator, Jon can follow and I will guard the rear"  
  
"... And Cele." Muttered Jon to himself, as they set off down the corridor.  
  
They reached the elevator and bundled inside. Prue pushed the top floor button and the doors slid shut.  
  
The elevator began to move upwards and Cele tapped her chin thoughtfully. "If this is an old abandoned factory then why is the elevator working?"  
  
"Because I told it to." Maddy said in a dry tone.  
  
"Sure you did. Just like you 'told' your hair to change colour, from brown to blonde." Retorted Cele in an equally dry tone.  
  
"Prue! Make her stop. I swear to god I'll get my athame and shove it up her-" Threatened Maddy as she glared at Cele.  
  
"Cele, enough with the one liners. Maddy, enough with the athame threats or I'll confiscate it." Cut in Prue, as the elevator stopped. "This is our floor. Everybody out." 


	2. Small Actions, Big Reactions

PT2  
  
They stood in the corridor outside the elevator and nervously looked around. Prue held her finger to her lips and then nodded to Maddy. Immediately Maddy blurred and disappeared. Her faint footfalls were heard padding away from them.  
  
"What do we do now?" Whispered Cele, as she peered into the gloomy darkness. A couple of broken lights randomly flickered on and off down the corridor, casting eerie shadows onto the walls.   
  
"We wait for Maddy and then I come up with a plan." Prue plainly said. She put her bag onto the floor and opened the zip. After a couple of seconds of rummaging around she pulled out a couple of daggers and slid them into her boots. She looked up at Cele and Jon and pointed questioningly at the bag.  
  
Jon shook his head and got into a fighting stance.   
  
Cele also shook her head and held her hand up. Faint blue and green lights materialised out of the air and flooded into her open palm. They swirled around and then condensed into a small ball of electricity, which then turned into a small red rose and then changed again into a glowing fireball. After seeing Prue nod she extinguished it and wiped her hands on her jacket. "Yuck, that always leaves a horrible greasiness on my hands."  
  
"How do you know they weren't greasy to begin with?" Questioned Maddy's disconnected voice, as she blurred back into sight. She smirked at Cele's expression and walked over to Prue. "The innocents are being kept in a what seems to be a big walk in safe, like the kind you have in banks, about five corridors away."  
  
"Ok, that's simple enough. What about the demons?" Asked Prue. Her forehead was already creased with thoughts of how to get the innocents free.  
  
"Ah, that's where it gets a lot less simple. They're in the room that the safe is in. And it looked like they were nearly ready begin with... you know what." Maddy replied, her cheeks blanching at the thought.  
  
"Damn it. We have to do it now. Lets move people." She kicked the bag of weapons to the side and set off at a slow run down the corridor, her feet barely making a sound.  
  
The other three followed close behind. As they drew closer the sound of laughter and a bizarre chanting filtered down to them. Prue held up her hand for them to stop and then slunk forwards to the end of the corridor.  
  
She peered around the t-junction and saw a large doorway. The door was hanging off and Prue saw a room behind it. A group of demons were standing around an altar, and one of them was doing the strange chanting. In front of the altar was a roughly drawn pentagram. She almost rolled her eyes. "Well at least they're not a bunch of high-school kids trying to summon a demon to kill their math teacher."   
  
She looked behind them and saw the safe door. It was partially open and a group of people were sitting on the floor, their hands tied behind their backs and gags over their mouths. Prue cursed and moved back to the others. "It's going to be hard. The demons are blocking the way to the innocents. They're gathered around the altar that's in front of pentagram. We have to prevent innocent blood from being spilled on the pentagram. Or else we all know what'll happen." Prue told them, apprehension on her face.  
  
"Blood, death and a really, really nasty beast from hell." Sighed Cele. "Just an average day then..."  
  
"Yuh. Well, you won't be joking if they do actually manage to summon it. You'll be the first to run screaming to the hills." Maddy shot bitterly.  
  
"You take that back, I've never run from a fight. And you can be damn sure I won't start now." Cele raised her voice and stepped towards Maddy.  
  
"Enough!" Said Prue, as she glowered at the two squabbling girls. "We are a team! And you both need to start acting like that. You need to be able to depend on each other in battle. Your very lives may depend on it one day." She turned away from them and looked back through the doorway.  
  
One of the demons was tying one of the innocents, a young woman, to the altar, while the demon who had previously been chanting readied a knife.  
  
"Damn it!" Cried Prue. "You two arguing has set us back, they're starting the ritual now! I'll go in and disrupt it, then you three follow." Prue lowered her head and shut her eyes.  
  
A faint glow appeared behind the altar. It solidified into Prue's astral form. Using the element of surprise Prue leapt onto the altar and kicked the knife out of the demons hand. Without pausing she twirled and leapt into the rest of the demons. They were sent flying as her astral form dissipated.  
  
"Now!" Shouted Prue as she re-entered her body.   
  
Maddy immediately blurred and dashed towards the woman on the floor. She reached her and tried to undo the knots that bound her. It was no use, they were too tight. She put a hand to her belt to withdraw her trusty athame and then began cutting at the ropes.  
  
Jon ran into the room and he jumped at the demons. His body took on the familiar blue transparency and he seemed to fly through the air. His foot connected with a demons head and sent it flying into the altar. He immediately jumped into the air and aimed a spinning kick at the demons that remained standing. They sprawled back onto the floor and he floated back down to the ground.  
  
The chanting demon reached for the knife and threw it towards the bound women. A jet of flamed scorched through the air and knocked the knife backwards. It plunged into the chest of the demon and he burnt up in a cloud of fire. Cele held her index finger up to her mouth and blew on it, a triumphant smile on her face. She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to see Prue, who was pointing at the safe door. A couple of the demons were pulling it open and trying to pull the rest of the innocents.  
  
Cele pointed at the door and sent an arc of electricity at the door. It hit the metal door and electrified it, shocking the demons that had a hold of it. Small flashes of electricity darted around them and they burst into neon sparks.  
  
Maddy finished cutting through the ropes and blurred back into sight. She casually leant backwards and stabbed two of the grounded demons in the chest. They burnt away and she got to her feet, pulling the unbound innocent with her.   
  
"Ok then, good work. We got the demons and managed to save all the innocents." Prue congratulated them as she walked into now empty room. After they'd ushered all the freed people out she smiled at them. "You realise you managed to do that almost all by yourselves, barely any help from me at all."  
  
"Aww, Prue's little angels are all grown up." Teased Cele as she wiped her hands on her coat again.   
  
Jon smiled. "And we stopped them summoning that hell beast too."  
  
"We rock." Maddy said simply as she threw her athame in the air. It spiralled up and then fell back towards her hand. She smiled confidently and got ready to catch it.  
  
"Nope, you don't rock. I rock, and Jon does. You just cut through a few ropes with your damn athame." Cele bitched, her expression condescending.  
  
With a glare Maddy turned to Cele, the athame forgotten. "You shut your mouth, Cele, I am just as useful as you and Jon. You can be such a bit- argh!" The athame fell down past her hand, nicking a finger as it fell. It clattered to the floor as a tiny drop of blood welled up. It slowly dripped off the end of her finger and landed on the painted pentagram.  
  
The pentagram flared gold and then began pulsing with red light. Maddy's mouth fell open in horror.  
  
Prue's eyes widened and she backed towards the door. "Oh... shit." 


	3. A Team Effort

PT 3  
  
"Get back, towards the door." Commanded Prue. "Get back now!" She shouted as no one moved.  
  
Cele, Jon and Maddy jumped and frantically ran to the door. They stopped on the other side and looked back to Prue. "Wh- wha- what do we do Prue? That things coming and- and- and its gonna get us and we're all gonna die!" Screeched Maddy. Her eyes had teared up and she kept blurring in and out randomly.  
  
With a sigh Cele grabbed one of her shaking hands and pulled Maddy behind her. "It's going to be ok, we're not going to die. Well we are going to die. Everyone dies eventually. Just not now. Prue's going to beat this thing. She can do anything, she's... Prue." Cele said quickly as she tried to hide her fear. She turned to Jon for support, but he was nearly as panicked as Maddy. Cele was about to speak to Prue when the pentagram flared again.  
  
The red light flooded upwards and rippled in the air. Prue shielded her eyes as the light pulsed brighter and brighter. The floor cracked and chunks of concrete and mortar flew upwards. A large shape emerged from the light and roared loudly. Huge teeth protruded from its mouth and a viper-like tongue flicked out over them, tasting the air. It stamped its clawed feet on the ground and roared again, as it waved its scaled arms around in front of itself and flexed its claw adorned fingers.  
  
It lowered its gaze onto Prue and spoke in a low rasping voice. "Who summoned me?"  
  
"I- uh- no one?" Prue said desperately, as she waved her hands behind her back, indicating that Cele, Jon and Maddy should be running away as she bought them more time. "You just, you know, must've got lost on your way to the grocer or something and ended up here. It happens to me all the... time."  
  
"Ahhhhh! Not good enough. I have been summoned, the blood has been spilt, the payment will be taken and the reward given." It screamed hoarsely back at Prue. "That is how it has always been and how it shall be now."  
  
"Pay-ment... and re-ward? I'm sorry, there seems to have been a terrible mistake here. We didn't summon you... not on purpose anyway. So maybe you can just... you know." She waved to it and then pointed down at the pentagram.  
  
The demon roared again and swung a rapier like claw towards Prue. "You dare mock the mighty Lav'at'ory?!"  
  
Prue swung her hand up to meet his claw and sent a surge of power up to deflect it. She breathed heavily and stood her ground. "Mock you? With a name like 'Lavatory' what do you expect? I mean really, what were your parents, assuming you had parents, thinking when they named you?" She heard a snort of laughter behind her and knew that they were still standing behind her. Prue frowned and spoke loudly whispered out of the corner of her mouth. "I thought I told you to get out of here!"  
  
Jon ran back down the corridor as Cele whispered back, equally as loudly. "We can't just leave you. That'd be low, and remember, we are a team and we have to depend on each other. And why are we whispering?"  
  
"I don't know. It's too dangerous, just go!" Prue replied. She felt someone moving to stand next to her and saw Cele looking at her, with a proud defiance on her face. "I am so going to ground you when we get back."  
  
"That's assuming we're actually going to survive this." Cele muttered nervously. She sighed and then addressed the demon. "So what's all this about a payment and reward?"  
  
"Cele! We do not bargain with demons. Its not the done thing, and besides, it brings nothing but trouble." Prue reprimanded her in a shocked voice.  
  
"Oh it can't hurt, if we're going to kill it anyway we might as well get something good out of it." Cele replied. She looked up at the Lav'at'ory again. "So? What are the rules?"  
  
Lav'at'ory bent down close to her and a twisted smile covered his face. "Untold power and riches."  
  
"Hmm, well. Here's the thing. Riches I don't need, my parents own a yacht and a mansion or three. The 'untold' part of the untold power doesn't work for me either. I want to be told what the power is. And I do already have a power of my own, you know." She cupped her hands together and focused for a second. Her hands brimmed with light and a dove flew out. It circled Lav'at'ory's head and then pecked it a few times before disappearing.  
  
Lav'at'ory snarled slightly and then gave a chilling laugh. "So the witch has a little power." He straightened up and centred his sight on Cele. "If you won't take my riches or power then I'll have to kill you." He growled and slashed down with a razor sharp claw.  
  
Prue sent a massive gush of power at his claw and pushed it backwards.   
  
Lav'at'ory tottered rearwards and crushed the vacant altar under one taloned foot. He fell onto all fours and howled in anger, before leaping into the air, teeth bared and claws outstretched. Prue held up both hands and focused on stopping Lav'at'ory. A small shockwave flew from her hands and rippled through the air. It hit Lav'at'ory and stopped him in mid-air. He crashed into the floor hard and the plaster fell from the ceiling. He lay there panting and started to get to his feet.  
  
Whirling lights and glowing dust motes poured into Cele's hand. They formed into a handful of sparkling balls. They were marble shaped and crackled as they rolled against each other. Without pausing Cele threw them at Lav'at'ory. They curved through the air and landed on Lav'at'ory. Each ball impacted and burst in a mini explosion. He screamed in pain and writhed to his feet. Lav'at'ory staggered towards Prue and Cele.   
  
Suddenly a fast moving, near invisible blur darted in front of them and up to Lav'at'ory. Maddy ran around his feet and stabbed him multiple times. A quick stab here, then she withdrew and immediately plunged it somewhere else. Cele and Prue ducked as Jon soared over their heads, heading towards Lav'at'ory's head. He landed a solid kick under the demons jaw and carried on moving. He phased through Lav'at'ory's neck and through to the other side, where he floated to the ground.  
  
Lav'at'ory began to choke and cough. Bloody frothing spittle foamed out of Lav'at'ory's mouth as he sank to his knees. He clutched at his throat and wailed inhumanly.   
  
Maddy blurred into sight and ran away from the injured demon, as Jon ran to Prue and Cele. "I ran back to get a knife… which I 'accidentally on purpose' left in his neck as I phased through. If you were going to do a vanquishing spell then now would be a good time, before he finds a way of getting rid of the knife." He said quickly and winced as he heard the squeals and roars of pain coming from Lav'at'ory.  
  
"Prue, quickly, make one up. You're the expert." Maddy begged nervously, as she stared at the demon.  
  
"I… ok, give me a second." She frantically thought for a few seconds and then spoke uncertainly.  
  
"Demon summoned for greed and gain,  
  
Brought here by an innocents pain,  
  
Leave our sight and don't return,  
  
Go back to Hell where you will burn!"  
  
Lav'at'ory screamed and thrashed about on the floor as the pentagram burst into flames. His scaled skin blackened and peeled as he fell down through the flaming portal.   
  
The portal fizzled shut and the pentagram disappeared in a puff of smoke.   
  
Cele cheered and clapped her hands. "Woo-hoo. Evil none good-" She looked around at the scorch marks on the floor and the remains of the altar. "- a hell of a lot!"  
  
Maddy put her athame back into her belt and sighed. "Please, don't mention hell." She looked at Prue and rubbed her soot-smudged forehead. "Can we go home now?"  
  
Prue laughed and nodded. "Yes, we can go home now. And maybe fit in a few hours training before bed." She laughed again and ran back to the elevator, ignoring the moans and groans of her young pupils as they ran after her. 


End file.
